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Denmark to introduce checks at all border points with Sweden

Ritzau/The Local
Ritzau/The Local - [email protected]
Denmark to introduce checks at all border points with Sweden
Danish border control on the border with Germany. Photo: Claus Fisker/Ritzau Scanpix

The Danish government is to instate border control on the border with Sweden, citing recent bomb explosions and gang violence.

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A series of explosions in Copenhagen and gang-related shootings are to result in temporary border control for people travelling to Sweden.

The border checks will begin in mid-November and will take place at all border crossings one or more times per week, broadcaster DR reports.

People travelling across the border will therefore need to carry identification such as a passport or driving licence.

Border checks were set to be announced by Justice Minister Nick Hækkerup on Thursday as part of a security plan relating to the gang-related violent episodes that have occurred in Copenhagen in recent months, according to DR's report.

Controls will be put in place on November 12th for an initial six-month period.

The border checks will take place at ferry crossings at Rønne (Bornholm), Helsingør (Zealand), Frederikshavn and Grenaa (both Jutland) and at the Øresund Bridge and on all rail connections between Sweden and Denmark.

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Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen mentioned border control in an interview this week in which she discussed increased video surveillance in Denmark, also in connection with the Copenhagen bombings and violence this summer.

Those incidents include an explosion at the Tax Agency in the Nordhavn area of the city, for which police suspect two Swedish men. No serious injuries occurred.

The Danish government has informed Stockholm and the EU Commission of its decision to control the border, DR reports.

EU rules allow temporary border control within the Schengen zone for up to six months, after which application must be made to member states via the Commission's council of ministers to extend the arrangement.

Commuters between Copenhagen and Malmö and others who regularly cross the Denmark-Sweden border are likely used to bringing passports with them, given that Sweden has had its own controls in place since the European refugee crisis in late 2015.

Denmark has had checks in place on its border with Germany since January 2016, having extended them on several occasions.

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